Professional baseball Hanwha Eagles fireballer Moon Dong-joo (22) will make his first appearance at Daejeon Shin Stadium. Although the game date could have been postponed due to a sudden cancellation, Moon Dong-joo will keep his scheduled date.

Hanwha announced on the 1st that right-handed Moon Dong-joo will be the starting pitcher for the home game against the Lotte Giants at Hanwha Life Baseball Park in Daejeon on the 2nd. Rather than delaying sidearm Eom Sang-baek's previously scheduled start for the Lotte game on the 1st by a day, Moon Dong-joo will pitch on his scheduled date. There is no issue with Eom Sang-baek's physical condition; this decision was made by the coaching staff.

Moon Dong-joo is currently undergoing a build-up process. He finished last season a month early due to unresolved shoulder pain in early September and underwent rehabilitation throughout the winter. He gradually built up during spring training in Australia in Melbourne and in Okinawa, Japan, without pitching in a game.

He has started to be actively deployed since the exhibition games. On the 11th of last month, he threw 19 pitches in one inning against SSG in Munhak and 28 pitches in two innings against Lotte on the 14th. He gradually increased his innings and pitch count, entering the rotation as a fifth starter to begin the season. In his first appearance of the season against LG on the 27th of last month, he planned to throw 60 pitches.

Although 3 to 4 innings were expected, he pitched 5 innings, allowing 1 hit, with no walks and striking out 6 batters without giving up a run, showcasing a strong presence. He left without a decision due to a lack of support from the offense but pitched efficiently with 61 pitches through 5 innings. His fastball topped out at 158 km/h and averaged 153 km/h, demonstrating impressive velocity and command.

After a 5-day rest, he will start against Lotte on this day. It is expected that he will increase his pitch count to around 70 to 80. Notably, this is Moon Dong-joo's first appearance at Daejeon Shin Stadium, where he is nicknamed the 'Daejeon Prince.' This will also be his first time pitching on the mound at Daejeon Shin Stadium, including exhibition games.

As Moon Dong-joo is keeping his original pitching date, Eom Sang-baek's start is being pushed back. He may start against Lotte on the 3rd or skip a turn and pitch against Samsung in Daegu on the 6th. If that happens, the remaining pitchers Kodi Ponse, Ryan Weiss, and Ryu Hyun-jin could also pitch on their originally scheduled dates. If he pitches against Lotte on the 3rd, Ponse, Weiss, and Ryu Hyun-jin's appearances will each be delayed by a day.

Meanwhile, the five KBO League games scheduled for the 1st have been canceled due to the tragic death of a baseball fan that occurred at Changwon NC Park on the 29th of last month. The KBO decided not to hold any games on the 1st, including the Futures League, as a tribute to the victims.

The SSG-NC three-game series that was scheduled to take place in Changwon has been postponed. Other games at Jamsil between Kiwoom and Doosan, Suwon between LG and KT, Daejeon between Lotte and Hanwha, and Gwangju between Samsung and KIA will resume on the 2nd.

Due to the unfortunate incident, the starting pitchers for several teams, like Hanwha, have also changed. KT will be starting Oh Won-seok on the 2nd instead of So Hyung-jun, who was originally slated to pitch on the 1st. KIA will switch from Yoon Young-chul to Kim Do-hyun, and Kiwoom will change from Jeong Hyun-woo to Yoon Hyun.

LG (Eliezer Hernandez), Lotte (Kim Jin-wook), Samsung (Choi Won-tae), and Doosan (Choi Seung-yong) have maintained their scheduled starting pitchers for the 2nd as announced on the 1st.

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